Swimming Looks to Defend ODAC Title
by Brendan Kerrigan ‘09
Sports Editor··································
When we last left the Jackets, they had just suffered a loss from Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. Looking to bounce back, the women hosted ODAC opponent Sweet Briar in the last meet of the year, which was also senior day. This meet recognized the three seniors who have worked hard this year and in previous years to help Randolph-Macon swimming to get where it is now. Seniors Aimee Powell, Randi Smith, and Maureen McLaughlin were honored for their commitment and achievement at this meet. Continuing the celebration, the women pulled out a 106-99 victory over the Vixens from Sweet Briar.
The Jackets took first place in eight of the meet’s eleven events with two swimmers capturing two individual races. Junior Laura Belch won the 50yd freestyle and the 100yd freestyle, while sophomore Marlene Graf captured first in the 200yd freestyle and the 100yd backstroke. Also capturing individual honors were Powell in the 500yd freestyle and freshman Meredith Bagenstose in the 200yd IM and Corrine Campbell in the 100yd butterfly. The Jackets took first in the 200yd medley relay, which consisted of Graf, Campbell, junior Meredith Walters and freshman Amanda Steinagel. Second place finishes were won by Powell in the 1000yd freestyle, and the 200yd freestyle relay team of Belch, Walters, Powell, and Campbell.
The Jackets wrapped up their season with an 8-3 overall record, going 6-1 in ODAC competition. The women are preparing themselves for the ODAC championships this weekend at Radford University. We wish the best of luck to our swimmers as they look to defend their title from top-seeded Washington and Lee. We on the sports staff would also like to wish congratulations to Powell, Smith, and McLaughlin for their commitment and accomplishments to the program. We all wish you the best of luck for the future.
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Senior Spotlight:
Aimee Powell
by Brendan Kerrigan ‘09
Sports Editor··································
Four years ago, Mechanicsville, Virginia native, Aimee Powell was faced with a decision that would ultimately guide her future. The decision concerned where she wanted to continue her education. After graduating from Atlee High school in 2004, Powell was looking for a school that she felt comfortable and could offer her a chance to swim at the collegiate level. Upon visiting Randolph-Macon, Powell “really liked the atmosphere and felt like it was a good fi t for [her]”. She set up a swimming recruitment visit, and following her stay knew that Randolph-Macon College was the place for her.
Aimee entered Randolph-Macon in the fall of 2004, starting right away a swimming career that would be anything less than average. Competing in several races, such as the 200m freestyle, 500m freestyle, 1000m freestyle, 1650m freestyle, and the 400m IM, Aimee made her presence known in each. Now in 2008, her senior year, Aimee has amassed an impressive number of accolades. Throughout her years, she has received the title of “Captain” of the current team, became a 5-time ODAC event champion, a 3-time All-ODAC team in eight different events, and an Academic All-American for three years.
There are many things that Aimee considered to be among her best memories here at Randolph-Macon. One of her favorite memories of being a part of the swim team were the training trips, in which the women would travel during school-breaks to train for the season. Aimee stated that the trips helped her team become closer with one another since “we all had to entertain ourselves to get through them!” Aimee’s favorite memory however came during the ’06-’07 season where the Jackets won the ODAC championship. When asked of the experience, Powell stated “It was a great experience and the team really came together to get the win”.
“Winning the ODAC’s will be one of my favorite memories while at R-MC” Powell stated, reflecting on the accomplishment. “We all knew going into that meet that we had what it took to win and beat our rival Washington and Lee. It came down to the last relay of the meet, which was won of the most exciting races I ever watched”. Aimee stated that when they had found out that they had defeated the ODAC perennial power W&L, the feelings and emotions were indescribable.
While at Randolph-Macon, Aimee accredits her success to the hard work that her coaches put forth. For her first three years, Aimee was coached by Dave Holland, who she states helped her learn about the importance of leadership and hard work in and out of the pool. Currently, Powell and the rest of the team is coached by first year, Ben Delia from Trinity College. Powell states that Delia has carried out the same lessons and principles that were put forth by Holland.
Powell, who is set to graduate this upcoming spring, has a demanding regime in the classroom as well as the pool. Aimee is set to graduate with a degree in Psychology and a minor in women’s studies. Following graduation, Aimee plans to attend nursing school and enroll in an accelerated program so that she can earn her master’s degree in nursing.
When asked about her past four years at Macon, Powell was quoted on saying that they “have been the best four years of my life”. The decision to attend Randolph- Macon College proved to be the right one for Powell as she has succeeded in the pool, in the classroom, and has made lifelong friends with her fellow students. Powell said that while attending R-MC, she has learned a lot and increased her knowledge and at the same time had a great time. With only a semester left, Aimee said she is sad to be graduating but at the same time ready to turn the page and start the next chapter in her life; which if anything like the past should be full of excitement and momentous accomplishments.
Aimee and the swim team are currently preparing themselves for the ’07-’08 ODAC Championships this weekend at Radford University. Events start on February 15th and continue until the 17th. We all wish the best of luck to our swimmers, and seniors such as Aimee Powell, who have contributed greatly to the prominence of the Randolph-Macon Women’s Swim Team.
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Win, Win, Win: 17-4 Overall, 11-3 in the ODAC
by Ben Middleton
Staff Writer··································
The basketball court seems to be the place to be, as our men’s team continues its exciting 2007-08 season. The Jackets have improved to 17-4 overall and11-3 in the ODAC. With a newly named Player of the Week, junior Justin Short, and several key victories over rival ODAC contenders, our Jackets continue to improve.
On January 23, the win streak continued to twelve games as the Jackets clinched a home victory over ODAC rival Bridgewater. Justin Short and Jeremy Dixon led the team in points, both throwing up 14. Dixon also had a game-high 10 rebounds. R-MC was down 24-22 at halftime, but took the lead after an early 18-0 run in the second half to eventually win 70- 55.
Three days later, the Jackets traveled to Virginia Beach, Virginia and took on No. 16 Virginia Wesleyan College. The twelve game streak sadly ended as R-MC was defeated 56-38 in a defensive battle. The Marlins outscored the Jackets 19-0 within the first 5:26 of the second half, taking a 42-21 advantage. Short led the team with 9 points, followed by Dixon with 7.
On January 2nd, RM-C hosted No. 23 Guilford in an unfortunate loss, 51-69. The Quakers started the game with and early 10-0 lead and held the Jackets to 18 -55 shots, a shooting percentage of 32.7%. Justin Short led the team with 15 points and freshman Jordan Brown scored 14 in his first collegiate start.
Despite the losses our Jackets were able to bounce back at home on February 3rd, defeating Emory and Henry 123-97. Justin Short led the high scoring play with 34 points, a career high. There were also four other Jackets with double digits. Brown had a career high 20 points, Carlson threw up 17, Dixon with 12, and freshman Danny Jones scored 10. Dixon also had a career best 17 boards. The Jackets shot 64% from the field, including 9-11 behind the arch. RM-C had a consistent lead throughout the game, including a 32 point advantage late in the game.
On February 6th, the Jackets traveled to Lynchburg to take on the Hornets, ultimately defeating them, 78-58. Freshman Jordan Brown led the team with 23 points, followed by Short with 19. Dixon and Jones each had 6 rebounds. The Jackets shot for 47% in the first half, and were up 19 points early in the second half. Lynchburg came within 9 points with 6:35 remaining; however the Jackets stomped out any signs for a comeback with a 19-8 run.
The Jackets continued the win streak in an ODAC home victory, defeating Washington and Lee, 78-66 on February 9th. Short led with 22 points. Dixon had a double double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Carlson scored off the bench with 16, shooting 4-7 from behind the arch. R-MC made 31-62 attempts with a 41-32 lead at halftime.
The next day our Jackets clenched another home victory, defeating ODAC rival Roanoke 75-66. Jordan Brown had an outstanding game with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Short followed up with 20 points. R-MC led for most of the game; however the Maroon’s, Josh Laporte, was able to tie it up 62-62 with 2:34 left. Despite the late comeback effort, the Jackets went on a 13-4 run to end the game victorious. Randolph-Macon has won 16 of the past 17 meetings against the Maroons.
Throughout the past three games, our Jackets have shown great team chemistry, with multiple players scoring double digits. This last week however, junior point guard Justin Short averaged 20.3 points per game, and was named ODAC Player of the Week. Short scored 19 against Lynchburg, 22 versus Washington and Lee, and 20 against Roanoke. In addition, Short also has only turned the ball over 3 times in the past 102 minutes.
The next action starts off on February 13th, when our Jackets face another ODAC opponent as they travel to Bridgewater College to take on the Eagles.
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Women Bounce Back Strongly
by Tyler Watkins ‘08
Staff Writer··································
For the Randolph-Macon Women’s Basketball team, the last few weeks of competition have been heavily saturated with wins. Unfortunately and uncharacteristically, the past few weeks have also been dotted sporadically with losses.
Their two losses in February came at the hands of Emory and Henry, and Virginia Wesleyan College. Both of these schools are ODAC foes that have proven to be tough competition for our Lady Jackets. Other than that the team has been flawless, handling Guilford, Lynchburg, and Bridgewater to move to second in the ODAC with an 18-3 record overall (13-3 in the ODAC).
Their win over Lynchburg was the result of a late-game surge, with Molly Ariail and Lindsay Riesbeck both putting up double-doubles. Notably, Ariail managed to grab 18 rebounds, a career high. The Jackets got some help from the bench when Nicole Childress put up 12 points in the win. Showing that all of their practice has paid off, the Jackets hit 6-of-7 free throws in the final stretch of the game to seal the victory.
After their big win over Lynchburg, the Lady Jackets traveled to Virginia Beach, VA to play the Virginia Wesleyan Marlins. Ariail again led the team with 19 points, and Childress came off the bench strong with 13 points. Unfortunately, this was one road trip that would not turn out well for the Jackets, as Virginia Wesleyan came out on top 63-45.
The Jackets only fed up off of this loss, as they stepped up late in the game to defeat Bridgewater 68-64. This victory was led by Amanda Hiltunen who put up 19 points in the win. Riesbeck had 2 steals and 4 blocks in the game, statistics that are often overlooked, and are often times the most important. Ariail had 2 blocks and 4 steals, and Marta Merkel had 2 steals in the win that brought the Jackets to 13-3 in the ODAC.
Head to Crenshaw this Saturday, February 16 at 2:00 pm to watch the Lady Jackets attempt to improve their ODAC record against visiting Randolph College.
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